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The structure loomed over the street, rain pouring down off the roof, flowing through the mouths of Gargoyles and the jars of Nymphs that decorated the corners of it's copper roof. It was magnificent. Wonderful. The line was short, hardly twenty long, but that was okay. A moments worth of waiting proceeded the bellman ushering the first guest inside to a seat. Moments passed and then another was taken. In short time it was your turn. You were led in by a red shirted gentleman who took your pea-coat and bowler and escorted to a seat on the third row of The Opera House, right side. The show was about to begin.

7:00.

The lights dimmed, the audience quieted, the curtains began to rise. It was strange how the seats alternated in color, white on black down each row. That thought quickly left as the curtain revealed the scene below. The stage was practically empty. In it's place, a single chess board sat on stilts, a chair to each side. The audience leaned forward. This was what they had come to see.

His footsteps rapped off the polished wood of the stage for a second before he entered from stage left. His slicked mustache and perfectly groomed hair spoke of his status well. Duke Karl II of Brunswick, the host of this event. When he spoke, his voice was rough like gritted stone and his words as smooth as glass.

"Welcome, one and all. I fear that I have misled you and for that I must apologize." His accent rang thick in the air. "You come to watch the willing match of the American Paul Morphy and myself, an event that I'm afraid was unable to happen."

"Due to this free mans' impudence I was forced to.. coerce him to play this match. Ladies and Gentlemen, might I introduce Paul Morphy!" The Duke held his right hand out and a moment later Morphy was shoved by two guards onto the stage. He looked terrible, his forehead bloody and his shirt in tatters. They had him gagged. The crowd gasped as one, shock prevailing through the room as a guard forced him into the chair, white side, and the other removed his gag.

"Mr. Morphy, can you see the board?" A nod. "Wonderful. Can you see the other board?" Morphy looked out and his eyes popped.

Two more guards came forward, locking the exits and blocking them with their bodies. The crowd began to panic.

"You may all have recognized the state of the theater. While we play, know that you are now pieces in this game. Several of your crowd are actually my men, humble participants in this little... social experiment. Know that this game may be your life kind participants and pray that Mr. Morphy performs well enough to succeed. Any questions?"

19. My concept of activity is that you post as much as you can and don't hurt the other peoples experience by lack of participation. Keep that up as well as you can or come to me if you have any issues. This prevents a lot of issues. Thank you for your involvement in the game.

20. Do not personally attack others but feel free to do whatever you need to as a player to help your team win, so long as it is within the confines of the game.

About Dragonmount

Dragonmount.com is a fan-maintained website dedicated to Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time fantasy series. It is an online community of people from all over the world who have come here to experience the series to the fullest.